Scardini: This is the game mentioned in the celebrated novel The Royal Game (Die Schachnovelle, 1942) by Stefan Zweig. Some consider this the finest novel about chess ever written (a passenger on a cruise ship appears to be a challenging opponent for the ruling chess world champion). In 1960 a movie, Brainwashed (Die Schachnovelle), was made based upon
Zweig's novel.

zentovic: <Scardini> Like can you see on my nickname (Czentovic would be more correct, lapsus), Iīve also read this nice novel. Itīs highly recommendable. And thanks for your collection S. fav. games, Iīve added some of them (From Russia with love and Knight moves) to my Movies & Novels. Recommendation: "Fields of Force" by George Steiner(probably you have read it).

25...Qc7 is just about winning for black. Another pawn grubbing cautionary tale.

This was round 15 out of 18 and both players had a shot at winning the whole shebang. They wanted this game so badly that they created a position where both were at sea...lol. Bogo managed to win this tourney by half a point over Spielmann and Alky.

Boomie: <paul1959: <Boomie> Given 26...Nb3 , maybe White should have played 24 Be3 instead of Bh4. Now the Bishop can support f2-f4 without giving up control of the c1-h6 diagonal.>

24. Be3 is better than Bh4. He wants to get something going on the kingside because the queenside is busted. However Be3 targets h6 and is a tempo ahead of Bh4 in some f4 lines. Perhaps he felt his position was lost and needed to confuse the issue, which worked in the game. This is an example of psychology trumping objectivity. Bogo should have won but he blew it as <Calli> pointed out.

<Sally Simpson> I'm trying to follow the moves in the book but I was having some trouble. The position is the same as at move 41, black to move, and the 6 guys playing a consultation game against Czenotiv are about to queen the c-pawn, when some mysterious advisor whispers over their shoulders: "If you queen right away, this will happen: 38. ...c1=Q 39. Bxc1 Nxc1 40. d7 Ne2+ 41. Kf2 Rd8 42. Kxe2 and you'll lose in 9 moves.

So they ask him what he recommends instead and the mysterious stranger says: "Don't queen immediately, first get out of harm's way, with Kh7. He will probably switch the attack to the other wing. But you will parry that with Rc4, which will cost him two tempi plus a pawn, and thus the winning position. It will be pawn against pawn, and if you defend properly, you can get a draw.

So 38...Kh7 seems clear.

He will probably switch the attack to the other wing = 39. Ra1? Rc4.

How does Rc4 cost two tempi + a pawn?
40. e5 Nxe5?
That's only 1 tempo and a pawn. One reason I suspect I didn't get the moves right here is that he insists that Kh7 is important to get out of check, which seems irrelevant here.

Sally Simpson: If you recall from the book it does say the position is very similar to the Alekhine - Bogoljubov game. Not the exact same position, so some of the moves suggested in the book will not fit.

ChessHigherCat: <Sally Simpson> okay, thanks, I thought that might have been poetic license and it was really the same position, plus I was reading it in German so I thought it might be clearer in translation (which, paradoxically, is often the case, when the translator takes it upon himself to clarify).
In fact, Zweig was probably just trying to throw in some technical terms there (tempi, wing, remis) to support the characterization of the mysterious stranger as a possible rival traveling to Argentina for the same tournament as Czentovic.

ChessHigherCat: I've read further in the book (Schachnovelle) now and it really is the exact same Alekhine-Bogo game. I just misunderstood move 39 to be Ra1 when in fact it was 39. h4. The only thing that's unrealistic in the book is that Czentovic would never have agreed to a draw in a completely equal position with a bunch of amateurs, even if they had started playing much better since the mysterious advisor arrived.

Regarding Czentovic offering the draw, there we have to grant Stefan Zweig his right to tell the story his way.

Czentovic offers a draw and challenges the group again.

The new player who has joined the group declines and leaves.

Czentovic then tells them if the stranger wants to play then tell him to be here tomorrow.

The teller of the tale finds the mysterious stranger and that kicks off the story when hear about his background.

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